WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The International Monetary Fund said its executive board met on Tuesday to discuss a report prepared for the World Bank alleging that IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva pressured staff to alter data to favor China while serving as the bank’s CEO.

A spokesperson for the IMF said that they had agreed to meet again in due course, though no date was given.

“The Board discussed the Ethics Committee’s deliberations so far and had a preliminary exchange of views on the report and the Managing Director’s statement in response to it,” the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson stated that the board had stressed “the importance it attached in conducting a thorough and objective review at a timely time and decided to meet again shortly for further discussions.”

Georgieva on Friday denied allegations https://www.reuters.com/news/picture/not-true-imf-chief-georgieva-denies-pro-idUSKBN2GD1DT that she pressured World Bank staff to alter data as it prepared its Doing Business 2018 report on country business climates.

Let me tell you what it is. It is not true. It is not true. According to a transcription of the meeting that was provided to Reuters, Georgieva stated that she had never put pressure on IMF staff to manipulate data in either this or any previous case.

An investigative report prepared by WilmerHale on behalf of the World Bank’s ethics board found that Georgieva was among the top World Bank executives who applied undue pressure to staff members in an effort to increase China’s position in the business climate.